This document describes how to enable users to schedule, reschedule, and cancel meetings from the Microsoft Outlook calendar. This Microsoft Outlook integration option is often referred to as the front-end deployment. When users accept an invitation, the meeting information and a click-to-attend link become available from their Microsoft Outlook calendar. The meeting scheduler receives Microsoft Outlook replies that indicate which invitee accepted or declined the invitation.

Prerequisites for Scheduling From Microsoft Outlook

Install the msft_int license.

If you added the license file after starting the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace Web Server, you must restart the MPWeb service or reboot the Web Server. License options are loaded only during Web Server startup. Failure to restart the server might result in the Microsoft Outlook plug-in download link not appearing on the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace web user portal.

The email accounts set up in the Microsoft Outlook client must be configured to use the Server Type option called "Microsoft Exchange." Cisco Unified MeetingPlace for Microsoft Outlook does not support other server types, such as POP3.

For Microsoft Outlook delegation to work with Cisco Unified MeetingPlace:

Assign delegates in the Microsoft Outlook client. Specifying the User ID of delegate in a Cisco Unified MeetingPlace user profile does not automatically add the delegate in Microsoft Outlook.

Microsoft Outlook delegates must have editor-level permissions to schedule Cisco Unified MeetingPlace meetings on behalf of other users from the Microsoft Outlook Calendar.

The Cisco Unified MeetingPlace user profile must specify the user ID of the primary delegate in the User ID of delegate field. Note that you can specify only one user ID, even if the user has more than one Microsoft Outlook delegate.

The primary delegate also requires a Cisco Unified MeetingPlace profile with the Type of user field set to delegate, attendant, or system administrator.

Only the user or the primary delegate for this user can update meetings from the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace web user portal.

The Microsoft Outlook calendar of the meeting owner and invitees will not reflect those changes.

Users of type End user and Delegate can make only limited changes via the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace web user portal to meetings that were scheduled from Microsoft Outlook. Specifically, these users can only make changes that cannot be made from Microsoft Outlook, such as specifying alternate hosts for Cisco WebEx meetings.

Users of type Attendant and System administrator are not restricted this way, for example, they can change meeting times and delete meetings from the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace web user portal.

Users cannot modify reservationless meetings from the web user portal. If a user selects "Yes, use my reservationless ID" while scheduling a meeting from Microsoft Outlook, then no meeting is actually scheduled on Cisco Unified MeetingPlace. Only a Microsoft Outlook appointment is created for calendar and notification purposes.

For Cisco WebEx meetings that require alternate hosts, instruct your users to select Yes, create a new meeting while scheduling meetings from Microsoft Outlook. Then the users can specify alternate hosts from the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace web user portal.

If you set up Cisco Unified MeetingPlace user profiles with the fields Can send notifications, Can receive notifications, and Send if meeting changes to Yes, these settings apply only to meetings that users schedule through Cisco Unified MeetingPlace. These settings do not apply if users schedule Cisco Unified MeetingPlace meetings through Microsoft Outlook.

We do not support multiple Microsoft Outlook users in a single Microsoft Windows sign-in session. The username that was entered to sign in to Microsoft Windows must match the Microsoft Outlook username, which is typically the mailbox name for the user.

Users are invited from the Microsoft Outlook directory and cannot be invited by Cisco Unified MeetingPlace profile. Cisco Unified MeetingPlace does, however, populate the meeting participant list using the user profiles with email addresses that match those in the Microsoft Outlook meeting invitation.

Only one email notification template, plain-text NotifySchedule, is used for the Microsoft Outlook calendar notifications.

We do not support third-party software which uses Microsoft Outlook automation to schedule, modify, or cancel Cisco Unified MeetingPlace meetings. You can, however, use Microsoft Outlook automation for calendar entries which are not Cisco Unified MeetingPlace meetings.

If you use your mobile phone or PDA to reschedule a Microsoft Outlook meeting, the associated Cisco Unified MeetingPlace meeting will not be rescheduled.

From Microsoft Outlook, users cannot schedule meetings with more than 200 occurrences. Recurring meetings are also limited by the "Maximum advance days to schedule" field on the Meeting Configuration page in the Administration Center.

Default Authentication Methods for Microsoft Outlook Users

Remember Me

The first time a user tries to schedule a Cisco Unified MeetingPlace meeting from Microsoft Outlook, the user is prompted to sign in to Cisco Unified MeetingPlace.

If cookies are enabled on the browser, then the user can select the Remember Me option. The stored cookies are then used for future authentication, so the user does not need to sign in each time the user selects the MeetingPlace tab.

If the User password expires, the user is prompted to sign in to Cisco Unified MeetingPlace and change the password. The user can again select the Remember Me option.

Requirements for the Remember Me Authentication Method

Users must enable the use of cookies on their browsers.

Single Sign-On

If you choose the Single Sign-On default user authentication method, users do not need to sign in to Cisco Unified MeetingPlace from Microsoft Outlook after successfully logging in to Microsoft Exchange or to Active Directory.

Requirements for the Single Sign-On Authentication Method

The username in Microsoft Outlook must match the User ID in Cisco Unified MeetingPlace.

Note that the Microsoft Outlook username may differ from the local part of the user email address (that is, the part before @). The username is what was entered to set up the email account in the Microsoft Outlook client. The local part of the email address, however, may have been changed by the Microsoft Exchange administrator or truncated by the Microsoft Exchange Server.

In a workgroup environment, the domain portion of the user email address (that is, the part after @) must match a configured Outlook Single Sign-On Domain in Cisco Unified MeetingPlace.

For example, from the email address userA@example.com, you would configure "example.com" as a domain in Cisco Unified MeetingPlace.

In a domain environment, the following requirements apply:

The domain of the client machine must match a configured Outlook Single Sign-On Domain in Cisco Unified MeetingPlace.

Note that the client machine domain may differ from the user domain. For example, a user PC may be in domainA.example.com, while the user account is domainB\username. You would configure "domainA" in Cisco Unified MeetingPlace.

Each Cisco Unified MeetingPlace user must have a unique username in Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Exchange that is the same across the entire organization in Active Directory.

For example, suppose that Cisco Unified MeetingPlace user "userA" is associated with two different domains, domain1.example.com and domain2.example.com, both of which you configured in Cisco Unified MeetingPlace. The Single Sign-On authentication method assumes that userA@domain1.example.com and userA@domain2.example.com refer to the same "userA" user profile in Cisco Unified MeetingPlace.

The Cisco Unified MeetingPlace plug-in for Microsoft Outlook enables users to select a tab within the Microsoft Outlook calendar to access a Cisco Unified MeetingPlace scheduling form. The plug-in comes preconfigured with system information that was entered while installing Cisco Unified MeetingPlace on the Application Server. You can, however, perform this task to enable each user to use one calendar to schedule and manage meetings on multiple Cisco Unified MeetingPlace systems.

When multiple Cisco Unified MeetingPlace systems are available, the user can specify which system to use by default. This and other preferences are configured from Microsoft Outlook by selecting Tools > Options and selecting the MeetingPlace tab.

Before You Begin

Perform this task only if you want to make multiple Cisco Unified MeetingPlace systems available for meetings scheduled from Microsoft Outlook.

Requirements for Client Installation of the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace Plug-In for Microsoft Outlook

Install the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace plug-in for Microsoft Outlook on the PCs of all Microsoft Outlook users that are connected to your Microsoft Exchange Server. If a Microsoft Outlook user does not have the plug-in installed when the user selects the MeetingPlace tab in a received meeting notification, that user might see an error. Users who are not connected to the Microsoft Exchange Server do not see the MeetingPlace tab.

If Microsoft Outlook delegates will use the Microsoft Outlook calendar to schedule Cisco Unified MeetingPlace meetings on behalf of other users, each Microsoft Outlook delegate and each person on whose behalf meetings are scheduled must install the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace plug-in for Microsoft Outlook.

Specifying the hostname or IP address of the Application Server, go to http://application-server/outlook/public/setup.exe.

Select Save.

After the setup.exe file is downloaded, complete these steps on the client PC:

Exit the Microsoft Outlook client software.

Run the setup.exe file.

Note: To make the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace scheduling form available to any user who signs in to a specific computer (Windows 2003, Windows 2000, or Windows XP only), use the -admin switch to install the client software. Specifically, select Start > Run, enter <pathname>setup.exe -admin.

Select OK to install.

After installation is complete, launch Microsoft Outlook.

Verify that you can schedule meetings by selecting the MeetingPlace tab and filling out the scheduling form.

What to Do Next

Installing the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace Plug-In for Microsoft Outlook By Using an Automated Distribution Tool

This section describes how to use an automated distribution system, such as the Microsoft Systems Management Server (SMS), to remotely distribute and install the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace plug-in for Microsoft Outlook.

You can install the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace plug-in for Microsoft Outlook using either or both of the these switches:

Silent-Suppresses the need for user input.

Admin-Installs the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace plug-in for Microsoft Outlook for access by all users of a computer.

When a user schedules a Cisco Unified MeetingPlace meeting through Microsoft Outlook and responds to the accepted notification, the system prompts with a Conflict Message window. The user must choose between two conflicting meeting records or choose to keep both records, which results in duplicate calendar entries. You must modify the registry of the Microsoft Outlook clients to avoid this issue.

Note: Microsoft Support confirms that this is a known issue with Microsoft Exchange (Ex12/108840).

What to Do Next

Customizing the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace Scheduling Form for Microsoft Outlook

From Microsoft Outlook, users access the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace scheduling form by creating or opening a calendar appointment and then selecting the MeetingPlace tab. You can choose the information and options that users see in the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace scheduling form.

Procedure

Sign in to the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace Administration Center.

Select System Configuration > Customize Outlook Interface.

Choose the language.

Customize or hide fields as desired for the scheduling form specific to that language.

What To Do Next

Updating the Microsoft Outlook Calendar Properties to Not Use Cisco Unified MeetingPlace

Complete this task if you uninstall the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace plug-in for Microsoft Outlook from the user PC. If you fail to complete this task, then future meetings that the user schedules from Microsoft Outlook will continue to display the MeetingPlace tab in the calendar appointment, and users who select that tab will see a blank page or an error message.

Before You Begin

How you update Microsoft Outlook calendar properties varies by operating system and Microsoft Outlook release. If this procedure does not apply to the user, then see the documentation for the relevant version of Microsoft Outlook.

Restrictions

This task does not remove the MeetingPlace tab from previously scheduled meetings. Instruct your users to ignore the MeetingPlace tab if they or the meeting schedulers uninstall the Cisco Unified MeetingPlace plug-in for Microsoft Outlook.